Since Giant Magnetoresistance (GMR) Effect and Tunneling Magnetoresistance (TMR) Effect were discovered in 1988, with the progress of the preparation of nanometer thin film materials and the micro/nano-processing technology, spinning electronics as an emerging discipline has developed rapidly and has greatly boosted the development of information science. Currently, nano-magnetic materials and devices have been widely used in many fields, including, for example, the fields of electronics, magnetics, chemistry and biology, etc. The study of nano-magnetic materials and devices has become one of the core issues of condensed matter physics and modern information technology as well as industrial production. This also means that the study of nano-magnetic materials and devices has become a complete process of comprehensive measurement and analysis, comprising nanometer microstructure imaging and nano-patterning and involving magnetic or electric fields.
At present, the Electron Beam Lithography (EBL) System is one of the important pieces of equipment for integration of the preparation and observation of nanostructures. It comprises a scanning electron microscopy (SEM) imaging function and an electron beam pattern generator, i.e., it writes nano-patterns directly on a resist layer using a focused electron beam. As the electron beam is characterized by a small beam spot and high energy, nanostructures with a line width of 5 to 10 nm can be produced by using an EBL system. This is the ideal method for making nano materials and devices. Currently, the world record of the production of nanostructures with a minimum line width of less than 5 nm was set by Raith GmbH (Germany) and has been held by it so far. Although some EBL systems have been integrated with probe arms having a function of measuring electrical signals, the existing EBL systems are unable to make the direct observation of nano materials and devices compatible with the manipulation and measurement of in-situ electrical/magnetic signals. This bottleneck problem is caused mainly from the fact that the electrons used for exposure and imaging in an EBL system will deflect under the action of an external magnetic or electric field applied for the in-situ measurement of a sample, which will seriously interfere with and influence the focusing and scanning of an electron beam. To solve the above problem, we have proposed the introduction of a magnetic field into an EBL system in the Chinese utility model patent No. 201120265595.5, entitled “NANO-PATTERNED AND ULTRA-WIDEBAND ELECTROMAGNETIC CHARACTERISTIC MEASUREMENT SYSTEM”. However, such magnetic-field generation device is unable to locate or introduce a magnetic/electric field in a local region.